Delayed Neurological Deficit in Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fracture: An Analysis of Surgical Outcome

Abstract

The International Osteoporosis Foundation has estimated that worldwide, approximately 30–50% of people older than 50 years are at risk for the development of fragility fractures secondary to osteoporosis.1 Vertebral compression fractures occur in 20% of people older than 70 years and in 16% of postmenopausal women.2 The majority of fractures heal with conservative treatment after 8–10 weeks. Surgery is indicated for patients who present with neurological deficits, deformities, and incapacitating pain with conservative treatment failure. Three percent of the patients with OVFs develop cord compression3–5 for whom the treatment is very challenging. This study aimed to identify the clinical presentation and predictors of clinical outcomes among patients operated for delayed neurological deficits after OVFs.